Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1887-03-18

Special Correspondence
SAN JOSE, March 8.
Inside of Miles seminary Here is CON
fusion confusion to me at least, whatever it
may be to others. Not that | am as unused to
schools as the sensational papers would have
YOU believe. have spent about as much of
my life in school, man and boy together, as
the average man. | reckon. | have been a
school teacher, as was my father before me.
But when you are marched in, entirely I'M
prepared, to stand up before 200 pretty girls
it is hard work. And then to be asked to say
something! And to have 200 pretty faces
leaning toward you, listening to hear you
talk in poetry | tell you, had rather make
rails
A detail of the interior of this edifce the
gymnasium, the library, the departments of
all sorts, the dorntories, and so on would
only he a repetition of NasSar Wellesley and
all other first class seminaries. And so | will
not weary YOU with these. Only | want to
insist that this place here is not second to any
thing of the kind on this continent Bear
This in mind distinctly. You can send your
children here with absolute confidence in this
assertion. True, this young seminary has
not the generous Endorsements as yet that
| some others have. But it is entirely out of
debt, and is nobly and thoroughly equipped
for complete work.
Have said enough to convince you that
our schools here are the peers of those in the
eastern states? No; it would take more than
a letter, more than book-more than many
| books-to do that. The vanity and the weak
ness of man is such that the eastern man is
ready to believe that his Bible is a better sort
| If Bible than that of the western man, almost
But | am tempted to give an example of
this singular notion of superiority which ex-
| lists in the minds of at least few scholars in
| the eastern states. On the death of DR.. Mills
the regency cast about for an eminent sue
cessor, and picked your Homer b. Sprague,
of Boston. Mr.. Sprague came, took posses
sion with a tremendous flourish of trumpets
and at once began, not only to put his mex
perence against the wisdom and life work of
the fifteen able trustees, but set himself far
above them all. The poor mans Boston van
ity got him into tremendous trouble, and he
went out about as fast as he came in. But as
he went out, with a greed and meanness
that has become the reproach of certain
portion of the republic, he grabbed with both
hands and took with him a big sum of money
for his brief services. And then this unfor-
unate man from Boston wrote a book against
his seminary so dear to the heart of every
Californian But the seminary continues
full, and Homer b. Sprague, so far as the
Pacific states are concerned at least, is a
ruined man. | make this brief statement of
a sad story not in Impotence, but III pity, and
as a clear illustration of the errors which so
many fall into when they come to compare
our schools and our scholars with the schools
and the scholars of the eastern states. 4
~
At the University of California you may
see many tawny little men from Japan, as al
Yale At Nassar have seen little bundles
# humanity with eyes like black diamonds.
These little toddling black bundles of human
ty are Japanese girls. But nowhere in
America, nowhere ev."''t in ENGLAND, have
| seen Chinese, of either sex, at school.
Yet at this one seminary here of which
have been speaking you will meet severa
girls from China, the children of missionaries
and merchants From South America ais
you can find them. And here you can find
one from Montana-a tall, strong creature
supple and splendid: a physique that il
full of the future. She is a native o
the Rocky mountains. Did | forge
to say how simply and severely these girl
, dress No iron bars about their young bosoms
, no steel strips no laceS but liberty-large anC
honest and open American liberty. I
healthier group of girls | think is not to b.
, found on the continent. They step straigh
out: their heads are in the air. They walk a
if they owned the world.
May mention one glorious nut brown cir
from the kanOka islands, whom ! saw i'll tn
German class She came here from ia
away she will never see what may say o
her. She has gone back to her island home il
the middle of the sea of seas now, and We vii
never look upon her amy more But were
4 Byron | would make her the model o
my song, and she should be immortal.
GIRL OF HONOLULU.
How beautiful she was, How wild
How pure as water plant, this child
This one wild chill of nature here
Grown tall in shadows. And how near
To God, where no man stood between
Her eyes and scenes man hath seen
stop still my friend, and do not stir,
Shut close your page and think of her.
The birds sang swecttr for her face;
Her lifted eyes were like grace;
The rippled rivers of her hair
That ran in wondrous waves, somehow
Flowed down divided by her brow
y And manted her within its care
d A perfume and an incense lay
Before her, as an incense sweet
- Before blthe mowers of sweet hay
- In early morn Her certain feet
Embarked on no uncertain way.
le Come, think how perfect before men;
"A How sweet as sweet magnolia bloom
~, Emhamrd in drwS of morning when
NV sunlight leaps from midnight gloom
Is Enthralrd to kiss, and first to kiss;